Legal software by (industrial) design

Fanshawe grads like Ian Campbell are revolutionizing the way we work. With Campbell's iCONECT software, legal firms around the world are linked and able to share and access the documents they need.

Before creating one of the most in-demand legal software programs of today, Campbell graduated from Fanshawe's now-defunct Industrial Design program in 1982.

"I think a lot of what we did (at Fanshawe) was really fundamental work in and around colours, graphical layout, the process of design — taking it from an idea to a finished product. That is basically what I do now — as opposed to designing a logo or a brochure, which was the kind of thing we did in that program — I now design software interfaces, which really aren't that much different," he explained, adding that parts of the Industrial Design program have been rolled into the current Graphic Design program.

One of the best parts about the Industrial Design program were professors Nelson Campbell and Alex Manu, and the experience they brought to the classroom, Campbell remembered. "Over and above teaching at Fanshawe, they also had real-world experience. That was very energizing and it created a mentorship for a lot of students — myself included — of 'I want to do what they're doing.'"

Another key component of the program was its three co-op terms. "We literally never had a summer vacation — you were either in school or co-op," Campbell explained. "Upon graduation, you already had three jobs on your resume." His three co-op terms were completed at a drafting firm in Brantford, a design firm also in Brantford where he designed air conditioner grills, and a graphics company in Toronto.

At 24 years old, Campbell headed into the advertising industry, starting his own company. At its height, the company had 12 employees. The venture was not without its challenges, Campbell remembered. "The advertising thing was very hard. Every day it's like, 'Here's a blank sheet of paper. Come up with a really, really good idea for White Oaks Mall.' And then a month later, it's like, 'Here's a blank sheet of paper. Now we need another new idea for the spring campaign for White Oaks Mall.' It's always a blank sheet of paper. I think that's why you hear that term, 'I got burned out in advertising,' because you have to come up with a new idea every day, or someone else will."

With the advent of cheap laser printers, the business eventually had to be closed down. "I learned a lot in closing down that agency," Campbell said. "I learned what to do, what not to do, how to work with a bank, how to piss off a bank — all of those things became learning experiences. The cumulative total of all of those are what now allow you to reap the rewards of some of those failures and now hopefully doing it better because of what you've learned."

In 1996, Campbell switched into a new industry — computer sales for law firms. When he recognized a hole in the legal software market, he decided to fill it. In 1999, he started his second company, Interlaw Technology Group, to cater to this need.

"Originally I was involved in a legal case in Toronto for the Red Cross, and they needed to get to the data from 18 different locations across the country," Campbell explained. The 18 legal firms involved were dealing with two million pages of data. Campbell used his design skills and his brother's C++ programming skills to put together the software to be able to connect the law firms for the case, providing multi-party access to a central core of legal documents. "If our software didn't exist, they would basically be making photocopies for everybody and shipping them all over the place," Campbell explained.

In 2004, Interlaw officially became iCONECT. "We've grown from two people in an office in downtown London to about 64 people with offices in London, Los Angeles and Washington."

"The thing that really excites me is to realize that the product that we created has created opportunities for other people," said Campbell. iCONECT has approximately 40,000 end-users, and knowing the software has become a marketable skill — one that is in high demand in the legal industry. "That's kinda neat — to realize that what I created has created jobs for people and opportunities for people to excel."

"The fact that we developed that, from a blank piece of paper into something that people can put on their resume is pretty neat to me."